This invention pertains to semi-automatic cartridge reloading machines which are particularly suited for persons who desire to reload their own firearms ammunition. Machines of this class are well known to those skilled in the art. For example such machines are described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,031,850 issued to C. R. Peterson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,058,387 issued to M. G. Hoyer, U.S. Pat. No. 3,097,560 issued to L. E. Ponsness, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,157,086 issued to T. G. Bachhuber, U.S. Pat. No. 3,483,792 issued to Charles F. Williams, U.S. Pat. No. 3,771,411 issued to Jan Vanden Hazel, U.S. Pat. No. 4,020,737 issued to Charles R. Ranson, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,031,804 issued to Richard C. Boschi. The machines of such inventions relate to shell reloaders which perform from one to multiple reloading operations, some of which position a plurality of shells sequentially in a plurality of operations and some of which perform a number of different reloading operations carried out simultaneously on separate shells including; removal of spent primers, introduction of new primers, powder loading, the reloading of bullets, and other operations. Some reloaders have a rotatable support which simultaneously position a plurality of shells open end up in different operating stations. Tools or dies on some machines are positioned above the open end up shells at various stations and are effected by moving the shell support either manually or in some cases automatically to each of the stations with some mechanism provided to bring the tools or dies into operating engagement with the shells.
Normally such machines are equiped with an operating lever or power drive system to provide movement of the tools or dies and the shot shell support. When levers are employed the lever is typically pivoted forward toward the operator to move the support upwardly toward the tools or dies and is pivoted rearwardly away from the operator to move the shot shell support downwardly away from the tools or dies.
In most cases the draw back of a lever-type reloader apparatus has been that the shot shell support must be manually rotated to position the shot shells at subsequent operating stations. In reloader apparatus that is equiped with mechanisms for automatically rotating the shot shell support such mechanisms usually include a cam and cam follower drive mechanism which is inefficient, complex and expensive to fabricate. In addition, such automatic rotating mechanisms still require the use of some manual intervention in performing operations at various stations of the reloading operation.
Other mechanisms drivingly engage the shot shells rather than the support but such mechanisms are undesirable not only because of failure to rotate the support properly if the support is not fully loaded with shot shells but also because of the damage the shell can sustain if the reloader jams and the operator applies excessive force to the operating lever.
Shell reloader machines known in the art while providing for some automatic features do not provide for a fully automatic loading function at all stations of the operation. Such machines require some manual intervention at the various stations of the operation. Further such machines do not provide for loading of both pistol and rifle cartridges with the same machine. In addition, many of the known shell reloading machines are of such design that require a spring as a material part of the machine and further do not provide for a satisfactory centering mechanism for centering the shells which enter the various tools and dies at each stage of the operation causing shell jamming or crushing and further requires the manual guiding of the shell casings by hand to avoid such problems.